Merciless (Option Zero 1)

“You didn’t want to join your father’s business?”

She didn’t outwardly flinch but felt a tightening in her stomach muscles all the same. “No. That kind of business never interested me.”

“So how does a woman with a degree in art design become a freelance security specialist?”

He had already done his homework, and that was what she wanted and expected. Her profession was legitimate, and she had many clients he could talk with if he wanted references. Not everything was a lie, but the next few were necessary.

“After graduation, a friend and I took a month to travel through Europe. We were at a nightclub and met some guys. I’d never considered myself naïve—I knew the signs to look for, but they fooled us both. Our drinks were spiked with something. I woke up in the trunk of a car. I had no idea where April was or where I was being taken.

“I won’t go into detail about what happened, but I did manage to escape. April wasn’t so lucky. She was found in a ditch along the roadway just outside of Rome. She had severe allergies and always carried an EpiPen wherever she went. Whatever we were given, she was apparently allergic to it and died.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It was a hideous, tragic event that never should have happened. It changed my world, my entire way of thinking about things. I think, more than anything, I was angry. I had no training, no protection against the evils of the world.”

“So you learned how to kick ass.”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“You didn’t consider law enforcement? Military?”

“As I mentioned, following rules is not my strong point. My mom and dad knew that when I made up my mind, there was no changing it. They encouraged me to try the FBI. They had a couple of friends who’d worked for them at one time.”

“Is that how you met Kate?”

She grimaced and then gave a slight grin. “Yes and no. I went in for an interview, but halfway through, I got frustrated and ended it. The interviewer and I both agreed it just wasn’t going to work.

“I was agitated…upset. Nothing was working out the way I’d hoped. I was distracted, not looking where I was going, and slammed full force into Kate as she was coming in the door I was exiting. I knocked her to the ground, and her coffee splattered all over both of us.”

“Knowing Kate, you got an earful.”

“And then some. But when she calmed down, she said something extraordinary that changed my whole life.”

“What did she say?”

“If you put that kind of energy into doing something worthwhile, you could change the world.”

“That sounds like Kate.”

“I told her once that if she ever got tired of chasing bad guys, she would do great as a fortune cookie writer.”

“Bet that went over well.”

“You know Kate. She gave me a witty, profane answer and a couple of insults, and we were good.”

“So how did Kate help you?”

The correct answer was she had saved her life and so much more, but Jules gave him what she could, which was still very much the truth. “She helped me refocus. To see purpose when there didn’t seem to be any.”

“Your credentials are both surprising and impressive. How did you get so good, so fast?”

She opened her mouth to answer, but the waiter appeared at their table with their check. Explaining all the training she had gone through, the ups and downs she had endured was best shared in private.

“Can we go somewhere less crowded and finish?”

“Of course.”

She watched as Ash took care of their bill, his expression unreadable. He likely already knew every single thing she had told him. Her story was as airtight as if she’d actually lived the life she had just described. Every ounce of it could be verified. If asked, she could produce a variety of people who would swear she was exactly who she said she was. Childhood friends, her second-grade teacher, even the first boy she’d ever kissed. There wasn’t a hole or even a slight wrinkle that could be questioned.